Deterioration through disease or damage from injury often necessitates that a patient undergo surgical intervention for the removal of his or her natural three-joint disc and facet complex and replacement thereof with an artificial disc. Unfortunately, the available artificial discs do not generally well approximate the function of a natural three-joint disc and facet complex. Still further, the available artificial discs cannot generally be placed or extracted from or to either the anterior or posterior of a patient under treatment as may be medically determined to be appropriate and, in the case of extraction, without regard for whether the artificial disc was placed from the anterior or posterior.
With the shortcomings of the prior art in mind, it is therefore an principal object of the present invention to improve over the prior art by providing an artificial disc and facet replacement that may be placed or extracted from or to either the anterior or posterior of a patient under treatment as may be medically determined to be appropriate and, in the case of extraction, without regard for whether the disc and facet replacement was placed from the anterior or posterior. Additionally, it is an object of the present invention to provide such an artificial disc and facet replacement that also very closely approximates the function of a natural three-joint disc and facet complex.